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In a statement,a Queensland police spokesman said compliance activity was still being conducted on all flights into the state from hotspot areas.Credit:Dan Peled

But one traveller,Andrew Cavallaro,who flew into Brisbane from Sydney,said he was shocked he was able to mingle with other members of the public at the airport while police did not check the details of several passengers.

“Upon finding my baggage carousel,I finally saw a group of police officers who were there to check the eligibility of arriving travellers but to my complete shock,the checking process was extremely relaxed,” he said.

“There was no formal process of cross-checking eligibility or scanning of border pass QR codes - I personally was merely asked to flash my print-out,with no further checking or questioning.

“I saw that some travellers did not even get checked,while others without luggage just simply walked straight outside.

“Anyone could have disembarked that flight and headed straight out into the community,even if they weren’t eligible,or even worse if they were COVID positive.”

Deputy Chief Health Officer James Smith said police looked at paperwork,but they did not check every traveller.

“But I know they’re working very hard to make sure that all of the t’s are crossed and the i’s dotted,” he said.

A 36-year-old man has been fined $1334 forleaving his Gold Coast property several times while under home quarantine orders,whilethree unvaccinated arrivals from Victoria tested positive to COVID in hotel quarantine overnight.

Police had previously been checking all inbound domestic passengers from hotspot areas. The compliance check change took place after last week’s shift to an eased travel regime amid a lower risk profile — due to increased vaccination coverage — and increased passenger numbers.

However,with many frustrated new and returning residents still stuck interstate with vehicles,entry by road is still barred for all but NSW border zone residents until Queensland reaches an 80 per cent full-vaccination milestone.

A police spokesman said compliance activity was still being conducted on all flights into Queensland from hotspots with banners and signs at airports and in-flight announcements to remind people of the travel requirements.

“Both uniformed and plain-clothed police will randomly select passengers for compliance checks and not all passengers will be screened,” he said.

“Teams of roving officers are checking evidentiary documents to ensure they are compliant with the
current Chief Health Officer’s border direction.”

The spokesman said police were aware of an issue where people who had made multiple border pass applications received outdated email advice and urged people to cancel previous requests if resubmitting a new one.

A total of 115 incoming domestic passengers have been refused entry to Queensland after police compliance checks across the past seven days.

More than 330 home quarantine checks have been done since the new system went live on November 15.

As of 5am on November 23,4827 home quarantine border passes for entry into Queensland from an interstate hotspot had been processed as part of the automatic system launched on November 15.

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